Device for locating sunken vessels.



No. 650,298. Patented May 22, I900. L. BRENNE N. DEVICE FOR LOCATING'S UNKEN VESSELS. (Application filed 1320.15, 1899.)

(No Iodel.)

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LARRY BRENNEN, OF WEST SUPERIOR, VISCONSIN.

DEVICE FOR LOCATING SUNKEN VESSELS.

' SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 650,298, dated May 22, 1900.

Application filed December 15, 1899. Serial N0- 740,432. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, LARRY BRENNEN, a citi- Zen of the United States, residing at West Superior, in the county of Douglas and State of Wisconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Devices for Locating Sunken Vessels; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being bad to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in devices for locating wrecked or sunken vessels, and especially to a buoy carrying a reel, to which is secured one end of a cable which is wound upon the reel, the other end of the cable being adapted to be at tached to the sunken vessel, said buoy adapted to be carried on board the ship or vessel and in case of the sinking of the latter to float to the surface of the water and display aflag or signal, whereby the buoy may be easily detected.

Another feature of the invention resides in the provision of a buoy adapted to be carried in a Vessel and having cable connection, whereby the buoy is allowed to rise to the surface of the water, and the provision of a flag or signal staff to which is connected an air-chamber adapted to rise and cause the flag or signal staff to be raised up through a central aperture in the buoy as water enters the latter and comes in contact with said airchamber.

To these ends and to such'others as the invention'maypertain the same consists,further, in the novel construction and arrangement of the buoy, as will be hereinafter more fully described and then specifically defined in the appended claims.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a buoy shown as floating on the surface of a body of water with the flag or signal displayed at its upper end; and Fig. 2 is a central longitudinal section :11 View showing the detail construction of the buoy, the flag or signal being in its closed relation within the buoy.

Reference now being bad to the details of the drawings by letter, A designates the shell of the buoy, which is preferably of metal of any suitable kind, and an air compartment or chamber B is provided in the upper end of said buoy, the latter having tapered ends, as shown. Said air-chamberB is separated from a water-compartment O by means of a partition-wall D, said partition wall being upwardly turned, as shown in Fig. 2- of the drawings, and having connected thereto a dome E, which is secured air-tight to said partition. Leading from the upper apertured end of said dome centrally and longitudinally through the air-chamber B is an open-ended tube H, which opens at its upper end through an aperture at the apex of the beveled or tapering top of the buoy. Mounted in said watercompartment 0 is an air-tight receptacle or float K, which has secured to its inner bottom wall a socket member K, in which is fitted the lower threaded end of the stem L, which passes air-tight through an aperture at the upper end of said float K and passes verti- Cally through the pipe H, as shown clearly in the drawings. Secured to the upper end of said stem is a flag or signal M, which in Fig. 2 is shown as rolled about the upper end of the stem, but when the flag is raised from its position within the buoy is allowed to open out and assume-the position shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings, thus displaying the flag a suitable distance above the top of the buoy to catch the eye of an observer.

Mounted near the end of the buoy in suitable bearings is a shaft N, to which is secured a reel R, to which one end of a wire T is connected, said wire adapted to be wound about the circumference of the reel and its opposite end designed to be securely anchored to any portion of a ship on which the buoy is carried and which it is desired to locate in case the same should sink. Said rope or cable T passes lines in Fig. 1 of thedrawings, and in rising the stem connected tothefioat will be forced upward and theflag or signal displayed, as will be readily understood. V

It will be observed that the-partition'D'is so positioned in the buoy as to produce a sufficient 'air-nhamber above the same, sothatia. conspicuous portion of the buoy will rise above the surface of .the water. As. the buoy: l rises to the surface of the water the rope. or cable upon the reel will unwind, and the buoy-H ancy of the devicewill cause the buoy to rise I to. the surface of the water and-assume a po sition relative to the said surface; substan I 5 tially as illustrated in the drawings. a i v r What I claim to be new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

* i 21-. Ina buoy for locating sunken vessels, at float mounted ina water-compartment-of the buoy adapted to beraised by the water, a stem 'to .saidfloat having a flag at its upperendl .which is adapted to be normally held in a Icentral tube in the buoy, and raised out of said-tube as the float is raised by the water 25 entering the water-compartment, asset forth. .2. In a devicefor locating sunken vessels, at- ..buoy having an air-chamber at its upper end,-

.a water-compartment beneath said chamber, ya float having a stem passing through 'a cen-; gojtral, longitudinal pipe or passage-way open- ;i ngthrough anaperture at the apex of the buo y, .aflagor signal mounted on the upper end'ofi said stem, and normally held in said Ipassage--way, adapted to be raised out of the buoy as wateren ters the water-chamber, and 3 5 {a reel mounted inisuitable brackets at the lower end of the buoy, a cable secured to said reel, and wound thereon, the opposite end of theca'ble adapted to be anchored to thesunken vessel, and to unwind as the buoy rises to the 40 f surface of ,the water.)

3. A device for locating sunken. vessels, consisting of a metallic buoy having a parti- 1 tion' preferably belowits middle portion and upwardly bent, a dome secured to the upper end of the partition, an open-ended tube connected at its lower end to andcomm'unicating withrthedom'e', its-upper end opening through an aperture at the apex of the buoy, a float consisting of an air-tight cornp'artmnent,- a stem secured therein, saidfloat conforming to the shape of said dome, and to be seated therein .when atits Ihighest throw, said stem-passing through an open-ended pipe and a flag or signalca'rrie'd at the upper end of said stem, a 5 reel mounted at the lower end of the buoy, and a cable secured atone end to said reel, wound about the latter and passing through an aperture at the lower-tapering end of the buoy and adapted to beanchored to the sunkenves sel, as shown and described.

In testimony-whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

- LARRY BRENNEN.

Witnesses: H. DIETRICH,

CHARLES S. COLEMAN. 

